[Abouna]

I've been loving my UE Super.fi 3 since day one and still use them almost everyday. Unfortunately I've never loved the cables. What are they thinking, do they actually try these themselves? Yeah, they are durable, but what kind of cheap 1980 stiff black plastic is that? $130.00 retial IEMs ought to have nicer material than that. Stuff doesn't even lay flat on your chest.

Anyone know if alternatives are possible? I know from calling UE they don't have any (they also don't sound quite as customer oriented as they did before being bought out!).

 

[jant71]

Plenty of alternatives. Like Awwan on ebay. I have one of his on my Altecs

.

Westone ES cable, Futuresonic, and others cables will work. I think the Microsonic Music cable will work and is around $25. The prices vary and some bring a sound improvement or slight changes in signature.

I still have the one from my Altecs which is new but I didn't even think of trying to sell it. Who really wants the old style cable anymore?

UE's new cables which would be the same one as on my SF 5 are excellent. I like a straight plug better and they are so much better with their new designs, Logitech issues aside. But the new cables are STILL not available. This is becoming quite a long wait and I was hoping for a new dual driver phone from them this year. At the rate they are going they will lose money from me and plenty of others who will go elsewhere if they drag their feet in getting their products out.

 

[Abouna]

Those look great. How do they lay? Also, what about the memory wire in the originals, do you miss it?

 

[jant71]

I wear my Altecs so that the Altec Lansing lettering faces downward and the bend of the earphone goes/points upward which matches my canals. Only the last inch of the sheathing rests over my ear. Some people cut that off; there are two layers and the top one is removed. Also some people shape it and use a hair dryer to set it like memory wire. It is light and is almost like not having a wire at all compared to the old stock cables.

I hate memory wire. I had the Westone ES cable and ended up cutting it off those. It is not necessary if the cable is good. My SF 5 don't have or need memory cable. They are elastomer and might try to jump off when they are new but, like a new pair of shoes, they break in and relax a bit around the ear.

 

[Abouna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jant71 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I wear my Altecs so that the Altec Lansing lettering faces downward and the bend of the earphone goes/points upward which matches my canals. Only the last inch of the sheathing rests over my ear. Some people cut that off; there are two layers and the top one is removed. Also some people shape it and use a hair dryer to set it like memory wire. It is light and is almost like not having a wire at all compared to the old stock cables. I hate memory wire. I had the Westone ES cable and ended up cutting it off those. It is not necessary if the cable is good. My SF 5 don't have or need memory cable. They are elastomer and might try to jump off when they are new but, like a new pair of shoes, they break in and relax a bit around the ear.

Thanks for the follow-up. Unfortunately it looks like Awwan doesn't have any sales on eBay right now. I'd like to do this without messing around too much. I wish I could just order the Westones right off but the prongs seem to be too long.

 

[jant71]

The Westone should be trimmed but it might be the better choice. The blue teflon cable I have helps out mids and treble. This is good for the Altecs since they have more bass than the SF 3. the Westone adds some bass to the SF 3 which would seem to be what most people would like.

Since it is just after the Chinese New Year, you might contact Andrew(Awwan) to inquire. It doesn't hurt to ask. I would recommend his other UE replacement cable anyway unless the sound of the teflon one is what you are looking for.

 

[Abouna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jant71 /img/forum/go_quote.gif The Westone should be trimmed but it might be the better choice. The blue teflon cable I have helps out mids and treble. This is good for the Altecs since they have more bass than the SF 3. the Westone adds some bass to the SF 3 which would seem to be what most people would like. Since it is just after the Chinese New Year, you might contact Andrew(Awwan) to inquire. It doesn't hurt to ask. I would recommend his other UE replacement cable anyway unless the sound of the teflon one is what you are looking for.

Thanks again. Do you know if he's on the forum here.

 

[Currawong]

I think -=Germania=- now has a business selling IEM cables as well as other things too. I'm trying to decide whether I want to get better cables for my UE10s or just sell them, as I don't use them that often.

 

[PixelSquish]

im in the same boat.

westone cable/UE cable for their customs - the best for comfort, they fall like silk and have NO stiffness. unfortunately, they made the triple's sound like terrible cheap earbuds

awann cable - ebay: i bought his higher end blue teflon cable - sound signature was a bit different, brought out mids/highs more but made bass less. i preferred the original cable SQ but not by too much. they look like the same braid as cable i mention above, but they are not. still a bit stiff, not nearly as comfy as the westone/ue custom cable but a bit better than the stock UE cable in that department.

new UE cable with straight plug - more flexible than the right-angle plug UE cable, same sound SQ as that cable as well.

of the three - the awann had memory sleeving but that had to be activated with heat (hair dryer) this was far less effective than the sleeving/memory wire used in the UE stock cable/new cable & westone/UE custom cable.

 

[irjoe]

I own the super.fi 5 pro's, and today, i just got the westone ES2 cables and did the switch with no problems.

no problem for me there, sounds great, and i'm digging the sound even more.. i think the bass got more tight.. but i dont know, as I'm not good at comparing without having them next to each other. But the wire is now for sure much more comfortable and worth using!

 

[Abouna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by irjoe /img/forum/go_quote.gif I own the super.fi 5 pro's, and today, i just got the westone ES2 cables and did the switch with no problems. no problem for me there, sounds great, and i'm digging the sound even more.. i think the bass got more tight.. but i dont know, as I'm not good at comparing without having them next to each other. But the wire is now for sure much more comfortable and worth using!

So the westones fit without grinding? I thought I had read the posts were too long for the super.fi. I'm wondering now if the holes on the 5's are deeper than the 3's?

 

[mytecmaster]

i ordered the enyo cables for my super fi 5 pro, if i am right you could use them on a super fi 3.

the only downside is the waiting time i guess, my order is still being made.


Null Audio Studio

 

[Abouna]

Those look great but too pricey for me.